Calculating the eastern and western boundaries of a UTM is very straightforward. Developed by the U.S. Army, the Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) is an international plane (rectangular) coordinate system. In the coordinate system, the world is divided into 60 zones of 6 degrees longitude. Each zone extends 3 degrees east and west from its central meridian and are numbered consecutively west to east from the 180-degree meridian. Transverse Mercator projections may then be applied to each zone.

Difficulty Level: Easy Time Required: 1 minute

Here’s How:

UTM zones are all 6 degrees wide and increase from west to east starting at the -180 degree mark.

Calculate the eastern boundary of any UTM zone by multiplying the zone number by 6 and substract 180.

Maps are the primary tools by which spatial relationships are visualized. Maps therefore become important documents. There are several key elements that should be included each time a map is created in order to aid the viewer in understanding the communications of that map and to document the source of […]

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The Look of Maps: An Examination of Cartographic Design is a cartographic classic by Arthur H. Robinson originally published in 1952. The book was based on Robinson’s doctoral research “which investigated the relationship between science and art in cartography and the resultant refinement of graphic techniques in mapmaking to present dynamic geographic information.”